Archery: the golden youth of the Arc club of Nîmes

Victoria Sebastian from Nîmes won her first national Elite title, at just 20 years old.

Encore un podium pour le Nîmois Baptiste Addis (en rouge), médaille d'argent autour du cou.

Sunday in Riom, Victoria Sebastian from Nîmes, 20, was crowned French champion. And Baptiste Addis, 17, finished with a silver medal.

The Nîmes Archery Club more than achieved its objective last weekend in Riom (Puy-de-Dôme), during the French Elite Championships. President Philippe Michelutti's club was aiming for a medal in each category. The ACN archers returned to Gard with a title and a silver medal.
''We did what was planned, it's cool. We almost did the double…'', says sports director Olivier Grillat, delighted by the performances of his protégés: ''We were aiming for two medals. A gold medal and a gold medal, so it's great.''

For Sebastian, after the U21 title, the Elite title

What can we say, then, about the happiness experienced by Victoria Sebastian on the shooting range, French Elite champion at 20 years old after narrowly missing out on selection for the Paris Games. ''It's funny because Victoria, the 2023 French U21 champion, met in the final the 2023 French all-category champion, Anaël Coupard, one of the six who were preparing for the Olympic Games'', notes Grillat.
In autumnal weather conditions, with cold and wind, the Nîmes collective, made up of seven archers, was able to distinguish itself. However, for Sebastian, it was not a foregone conclusion, with a difficult start to the competition and only 11th place at the end of the qualifications, average performances to boot.

Nice Nîmes-Nîmes duels

As a champion, the Nîmes player was able to raise her shooting level throughout the competition. She beat Louise Botte (Brienon-sur-Armançon) 6-4 in the 8th final, won the Nîmes-Nîmes duel against Mélanie Gaubil (6th in the end) 6-2 in the quarter-final and knocked out Justine Cellier (Compiègne) in the semi-final (6-4).
In the final, Victoria Sebastian had a date with Coupard, a French teammate during the pre-selections for Paris 2024. At the end of a tight match, where the two archers successively took the lead, the Nîmes player ended up having the upper hand, winning 6-4.

Valladont stops in the 8th

Another performance by the ACN, in Riom, that of Baptiste Addis, only beaten in the final (0-6) by Romain Fichet. ''Baptiste did not fail, it's just that he had lowered his power a little after the Games (team silver medalist, with Valladont), he wasn't at 600 arrows per day, Grillat explains. His opponent, Fichet, was his only goal of the season, he was prepared to death. And when you're not ready, it shows……''
Addis eliminated his teammate Iban Bariteaud (7-3) in the 8th, Bernardi in the quarter, by the same score, before dominating Renaudineau (Momas) in the semi. Among the other Nîmes players involved, Maia Tincu, Jean-Charles Valladont and Thomas Aubert left the competition in the 8th.

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